Magic of the Night
by JeffC FTW
Summary: Jonathan and Elizabeth Crane celebrate their first Christmas together.


**I had this idea spinning around my head for weeks now and finally got the chance. Take place a month after "Elizabeth and the Scarecrow" ended. I admit I missed doing them, and here's a minor comeback chance. :) The couple celebrates their first Christmas together a month after they married - and are thinking about some major plans for their future now.**

 **Only my OC belongs to me. The rest is property of DC. And the oneshot is named after - and includes the lyrics of - one of my favorite songs by Enya.**

The tree was breathtakingly stunning.

Standing at least seven feet tall and accommodating the height of the living room, the evergreen frosted with snow and the lights changing from clear to multicolored. The ornaments massed out ranged in colors from red to green, brown, silver and gold, along with pops of blue and rustic touches like burlap - as a tribute to him. Jonathan Crane gave the first real Christmas tree he ever had in his life a small smile. But its perfection could not compare to the one beside him, who held the brunette angel in ivory and gold.

Elizabeth Crane held out the last touch of their tree to her husband. "Do the honors?" She batted her lashes.

It had been a month since Jonathan Crane and Elizabeth Dodson left Gotham for good and got married in their native Georgia - in the bride's birth town of Macon, far from the reaches of the groom's bad blood small town of Arlen. The deeper the roots ran, the harder it was to tug; the irony in his childhood. Jonathan gave one of the classic symbols of a holiday he never once cared about a little wider smile and took it from her.

He climbed the ladder and adjusted it atop in the correct vertical position so it did not fall off, then slid back down to be beside his wife. "It's beautiful," she breathed when she held him from behind, resting her chin on his shoulder. "What you've been missing in life all along."

"Among other things," he agreed, his arms coming around to rest over hers, their bodies swaying together in a slight rocking rhythm.

She shushed him and put her finger to his temple. "But not now that you have me to help you pick up on all of that," she said sweetly, removing her finger and replacing it with a kiss. _  
_

 _When the stars are in the skies_  
 _make a wish then close your eyes_  
 _Are you dreaming_  
 _angels singing_  
 _everything is right_  
 _It's the magic of the night_

"She thought Christmas was the perfect sacrament to keep me in the church for the day -" he started, but she cut him off.

"Jonathan, none of that. That was the past. It's a time for family and for spirit, not just being a sacred day," Elizabeth said, her hold loosening but remaining clasped around his slim form. "It's all about cheer."

"Mmm, I'll try to remember from now on, for the rest of my days," he promised, turning his face in her direction and kissing her tenderly on her sweet lips. He tasted apple and sugar; must be her new lip balm. "And speaking of cheer," he added when he broke it apart, "how about our plans for tonight? It is Eve, and your friend Wayne..."

Elizabeth pulled back from him, showing her charming green sweater that fit her torso curves perfectly, plunged in a gentle V-neck to show her favorite necklace, and her dark blue jeans flaring at the ends. She was his Scream Queen, his everything and his reason for living. She helped him get away from Gotham for good. He saw no more use in being Scarecrow, but that did not stop him from perfecting his formula that succeeded in taking fear away - a process that much more reducing the risk. He was revered for the percentage rate and saving the minds of many rather than breaking them; that was what had him incarcerated and disgraced in the first place. Elizabeth was proud to be beside him in this.

"He, Susan and Tim will be here at six. We have four more hours, and the house is nothing short of filled with spirit," she answered with a grin. "Barbara and Dick will be spending Christmas with her father, and Dick has a great surprise to give her in front of the commissioner."

Jonathan chuckled. "I believe I might know the answer already." _Of course - a Christmas proposal. I can imagine what her father will take of this. But he DOES love the boy._

"He told me himself over the phone," she answered. "It's like something that you would find on the beach - mother of pearl in a double-curve. It's nothing you've ever seen before. Although..." Her eyes darkened with a worry that could clearly match how young Mr. Grayson must be taking it. "...he _is_ worried that she might say no."

Understandable, apparently. But how hard was it for her to say no when he "proposed" to her from his hospital bed following the incident with Bolton?

~o~

 _He smiled at her when he opened his eyes, the EKG running at normal and his blood pressure normal. He was told that he was going to live, and the internal damage repaired. But he was going to be in here for a few days longer._ Either way, I don't have to worry about that bastard hurting me, Elizabeth and the others anymore. _He cursed the man for trying to kill him as a last resort, but he got what came to him in the end._

 _"Sleeping Beauty awakes."_

 _He laughed at the ridiculous comparison as he looked at the beauty in the doorway. She was beautiful both inside and out, but he would not call himself that word externally; she had made it clear that he was on the inside. She pulled him and herself off of the Halsey and joined their friends in time for the ship to blow. He watched as she at beside him on the edge of the bed, afraid that the lightest touch would harm him. "I knew you would not leave me," Jonathan said, reaching out to take her hand into his, his thumb massaging the back of her hand._

 _Elizabeth snorted. "Who said I'd leave you even if it's for a few days?"_

 _"Dr. Bartholomew would want you to return to work."_

 _"He knows about us."_

 _Jonathan swallowed thickly. If Bartholomew knew about them, then that meant - "My career isn't over," she said as she saw the look on his face. "But as soon as we get you out of here and back to Arkham, then I'm going home to Macon...and you're coming with me."  
_

 _He would be discharged in three, four more days or so, depending on Dr. Winchester's opinion, but as soon as he was free to be returned to Arkham - "I'm free to go with you," he repeated, amazed even to himself. He would spend the rest of his life with her, in peace. He would be leaving this city behind, no more Batman, and no more Arkham.  
_

 _"Elizabeth, when this is over, do you want to have that wedding you always dreamed of?"_

~o~

He had been leaning in to kiss her when his hands brushed her hair out of her face, exposing her ears and those earrings that had been a wedding gift from Bruce Wayne. Blue diamonds were so rare that many jeweler had no chance to see an actual mined one; the vivid blue ovals were ringed with fiery whites that blazed against her soft skin. He smiled at her and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

 _Far horizons made of snow_  
 _Bring the hopes each child will know_  
 _Someone's dreaming_  
 _Bells are ringing_  
 _Everything is white_  
 _It's the magic of the night_

"Oh, speaking of which, do you have any time before...?" Elizabeth batted her lashes again, teasing and tempting. For the last month they had been trying to make a baby ever since they got married, but so far no such luck. Jonathan had just turned one year past his fourth decade of life; who knew how much longer it would be for him to have a child with his new wife.

"Dear, how much time do we have?" He looked up at the clock, seeing that they had under four hours. Plenty of time; once the Wayne got there, the Cranes would have NO private time until late in the night. "Oh, plenty. I suppose we should get right to it, Mrs. Crane," he purred seductively, picking her up and carrying her up the stairs for their bedroom, dropping her onto the lace chenille covers and looking her over, licking his lips.

 _High up in the sky, can you see a shining light?  
Can it be that we can see an angel who is flying, flying?_

She was laughing while she looked up at him. "Ready for having baby number one, Professor?" She sat back up and was just in the process of unbuttoning her jeans, pulling them down to show her red-and-green plaid bikini; she was in Christmas spirit, indeed. "When they get here, we won't have time for ourselves."

Chuckling, Crane was removing his tie and tossing it onto the chair beside them. "No, we won't," he agreed, "but that does not mean we ought to rush through this, my dear pet."

His clothes were gone so he was naked in front of her. His body was beginning to develop more fat thanks to her healthy cooking and more exposure to the sun, but there were certain parts of himself that were still sharply defined, such as his hipbones and his rib cage still showing slightly. He didn't need to look down and see his erection still springing ever from the reddish brown thatch of hair. Elizabeth pulled her sweater over her head to show her matching bra, with red lace over the bust. She giggled when she sat up and ceased right there, adding to his frustration that she had to leave this for him to finish for himself. "You teasing minx," Jonathan growled as he leaned over and reached behind her, unhooking her bra from behind and pulling it forward, exposing her aching breasts to his eyes, the dark pink buds hard and creasing in their aroused state before his eyes. Bending his head forward, he took one into his mouth and savored the taste of it, her head throwing back and moaning. Keeping his lips and teeth on the nipple, he brought both hands to her waist and pulled the last of the garments from her body.

 _Can an angel lose their way  
Who of us on earth can say?_  
 _Someone's dreaming_  
 _angels singing_  
 _everything is right_  
 _It's the magic of the night_ _  
_

He got into a sitting position on the bed; she crawled into his lap, wrapping her legs around him and holding onto his shoulders as she wiggled herself onto him. He slid on her without trouble, and they both moaned when the pleasure linked them together, her hips now moving back and forth over his, keeping the pace easy and picking up when the rhythm when one of them asked for it. Jonathan set his own rhythm beneath her, constantly rubbing his thighs against hers. This...baby making proved to be a bit of a challenge, but it wasn't like he considered fatherhood before. He had always thought about children screaming and driving the nerves to a frenzy; he would have to always make sure they did not get into his cherished chemicals. His patience level would not be the way it used to be.

 _When the stars are in the skies  
_ _make a wish then close your eyes_  
 _Are you dreaming_  
 _bells are ringing_  
 _angels are in flight_  
 _It's the magic of the night_

"Oh, Jonathan, I think I'm..."

"I am...too...!" he managed when his thigh muscles clenched, as did his inner muscles as his coil unraveled and allowed his seed to spill inside of her, and they collapsed onto the bed, both tired to their bones and the air smelling of their bliss. Jonathan did not want this to end, wanted to spend all of the rest of Christmas Eve with just her, but could not. The Waynes would be here any moment, and she had dinner to make.

~o~

Bruce and Susan were thinking about a baby of their own, they said when they arrived last night with Tim Drake in tow. No little ones just to spare Jonathan, thank God - thinking this, Elizabeth Crane sometimes wondered if her husband truly wanted children, but for her, if she lost him anytime soon, then a child would be all she had left of him.

Today was Christmas. She remembered as a little girl she always looked forward to it, would read all the classics with her mother and grandmother, loved _Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas_ , which she had just got Jonathan into, and Tim made a face at it as well as complained that "sequels ruin the classics", which she agreed one hundred and ten percent. Her husband huffed and called it rubbish, claimed originality was in the lacking department. If Harley were here, she would rant all she wanted. On Jervis' part, it was a miracle no one had a sequel to his cherished _Alice in Wonderland_.

She looked over herself in the mirror. The red blouse had a draping neckline and rhinestones around the waist, her pants black velvet, and her hair held up in a soft clip to show off the earrings, necklace and the ring set from Jonathan last night when everyone opened presents; they were all a clear cushion-cut halo of radiant diamonds. But the sight of herself was not all she paid the least bit amount of attention to.

It was the slip on the bathroom counter in front of her - with the miracle of a pink plus sign on the small screen.

The bathroom door was knocked on. "Elizabeth, are you all right?"

Her husband was here; a part of her wanted to wait and break the news to their friends, but her nerves took over and decided it could not wait. Opening the door, Elizabeth stepped out with her right hand behind her, the strip in her grip, but her fingers trembled and threatened to let it fall to the floor. Jonathan smiled briefly as he looked her over, then frowned when he saw her hand behind her back. "May I inquire what you are hiding from me?" he asked, suspicion in his words.

The pink plus was in front of him in no time. Seeing this, Jonathan's face was unreadable for a long period of time and therefore made her anxieties increase - before he put his hands over his face to cover it as he bowed his head...and he was _weeping_. He was crying with happiness.

"Elizabeth...a _baby..._ "

 **There you have it. :) Wanted to keep it short and sweet, no sense in exaggerating anything, so I hope you like it. Read and review!**


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